After I arrived in Nairobi, I met other volunteers at the house who were there doing various projects. Here, I met Randi, Haley and Kathryn, who helped me to finish stuffing the pencil pouches for a school I would be visiting with James later. Great ladies with huge hearts!
Later in the afternoon, James and Dancan took me over to Olympic Primary School in Kibera where the students received these pencil pouches with school supplies and the dental items from Hinnant Family Dentistry of Goldboro, North Carolina! The students colored the pictures for Dr. Hinnant that his office sent over with the dental supplies and turned them back in to me to give back to the dentist for his office. We had the opportunity to teach the kids about healthy smiles and some didn't even have a toothbrush before now so this was a great opportunity to share the importance of keeping their teeth clean. The students are able to attend here because they are sponsored by various people and organizations around the world. Students
are offered primary education for free, but beyond that, the student or their family must pay for it. So, to relate that to our system in the United States, students are able to go to school until 6th grade for free, but beyond that, they pay and in most communities, they cannot afford it so they don't have an education. These public primary schools are not plentiful, meaning they are few and far between so if a student wanted to attend school, one might actually have to walk for several hours to even get there. Some cannot make that several hour walk there and back each day. When I say several hour, I really mean several hours too! As a result, private/community primary schools have opened in places where students just couldn't make it to a school. But, to attend, students have to pay for these schools and in Kibera, where people live on less than a dollar per day, the kids cannot attend unless they are sponsored by someone. These students have been sponsored by various people, volunteers, churches and other well wishers along the way from around the globe!!! The pencil pouches they are receiving today are from my many friends from the USA who donated these supplies for them to use in their classes. Asante Sana everyone! (Thank you!) If you are interested in sponsoring a student, please let me know! I can connect you with Acacia of Hope International and a student in need at another local school where sponsors are needed! You can sponsor a child for about $25 USD per month if you are interested (it would include their school uniform/clothing, fees for school and a meal everyday! Please visit http://acaciaofhope.org/
Later in the week, I visited Power Women. There, I saw Katheryn again and met another new friend, Margie who is an author from Australia (to my right). Power Women is a group of HIV positive women who work to educate other women of Kibera about HIV/AIDS as well as assist in medication needs for those who are positive. These women come together each day and make the African paper beads as well as beautiful African dresses and men's shirts by hand. They sell their crafts each day in the slum to those who pass by (usually tourists) and they use this money as their personal income and to support the program of education and medication for others who are living positive. Here, I met a wonderful lady named Everlyn. Everyln is amazing to me (she is on the left, rolling a bead and also below, showing me how to dip and dry them- below). She not only shared her story with me, but she taught me her craft of the African paper beads. She spent hours with me each day helping me to perfect the bead rolling. What an amazing craft and an amazing lady! Everlyn is forever in my heart! If you want to know more:
Website: http://www.powerwomen-kibera.or.ke/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepowerwomen
My time here in Kenya would not be complete if I didn't return to see my Maasai host family for a few days in Ngong, Kenya. To see them again was extremely important to me! Upon arriving, my host brother Josephat presented me with a real surprise, something I never expected. He and my other "siblings" had gone to town where the Maasai ladies get their Maasai dresses and had one made for me. When it was given to me, I just cried because it was very special to me and I was thinking that it was probably difficult for him to have done, but he did it anyway. I put it on with the help of my Mom and other sisters since I definitely needed help learning how it goes on. After I put it on, I didn't want to take it off, but my Mom was explaining to me in some way that I somehow understood that she didn't want me to get it dirty before Maasai church in the morning. (She speaks no English but her pointing to the dirt floor of the house and pointing at my dress made sense so I said okay and changed back into my American clothes again, she smiled and folded it up for me). In the morning, I was so excited to put it back on! I ran over to my sisters hut and she helped me to put it on. After I was dressed, excited and more than ready to check this Maasai church out, my Mom was calling for me (at least I think she wanted me to come back over to her house so I went). There, was Josephat, his wife and kids, she started decorating me with her beautiful Maasai hand made jewelry and as she spoke to me, Josephat translated for her that she wanted me to be one of them, I was accepted as one of them now, as her American daughter, and this was her gift to me. I was speechless.
